The present embodiments relate to a mounting apparatus for mounting a flexible connecting element on a device.
A flexible connecting element, such as a cable hose, may be disposed on a device. The flexible connecting element connects two parts of the device that are movable relative to one another. For example, a medical C-arch X-ray system has a C-arm that is movable relative to a stationary part of the device and has an X-ray emitter and an X-ray receiver. For operation, the X-ray emitter is supplied with electrical high voltage, which is transmitted from the stationary part to the X-ray emitter by a flexible connecting element, in the form of a cable hose. A high-voltage cable disposed in the cable hose is used for transmitting electrical current. The high-voltage cable has a limited maximum length, so that rigidly mounting the cable hose near the device is disadvantageous because of an overly long connection distance that results from this mounting. The cable hose is exposed to as little mechanical tensile or flexing stress as possible from the relative motion of the C-arm with respect to the stationary part.
The cable hose is secured on one side only at one point of the stationary part of the C-arch X-ray system and on the other side at one point of the C-arm, with the cable hose hanging free between these two points. Because of the unsupported free course of the cable hose between the two aforementioned points, the cable hose is exposed, by its own weight, to comparatively high tensile stress. The cable hose is poorly controlled in its course because of the suspension from only two points. Because of gravity, depending on the relative position of the C-arm with respect to the stationary part, the cable hose sags to a varying extent and thus limits the freedom of motion in the vicinity of the C-arch X-ray system.
German Patent DE 197 47 393 C2 discloses a weight-compensating device with a cable drum for receiving a load-bearing cable. The cable drum is stressed by the force of a spiral spring element. The load-bearing cable can be used to bear a useful load. In FIG. 1 of this reference, a hoselike connecting element is embodied between a ceiling tripod on the one hand and an X-ray emitter on the other.